Bet on the NBAThe Miami Heat have dropped their fifth game in a row, this time to the Portland Trailblazers in a 105-96 beating for the Heat at home.
Miami's defensive shortcomings are really beginning to show for the so-called Dream Team from South Beach. Despite having decent performances from a couple of their stars, the Heat could not overcome Portland's offense.

LeBron James had a good night, with 31 points, 11 rebounds, and 8 assists. Teammate Dwyane Wade also caught on fire, going 12-21 and scoring 38 points in the game. But the rest of the team fell fall short of the two leaders, scoring only 27 points altogether. Chris Bosh ended with 7 points on 3-for-11 shooting after being shut down by Trail Blazer LaMarcus Aldridge.

Aldridge put in 26 points on 11-for-20 shooting from the field. His ability to completely shut down Bosh was instrumental in keeping Miami from taking off. Gerald Wallace also had a great night off the bench with 22 points and 9 rebounds. Another strong performance for Portland came from Brandon Roy, who went 5-for-8 to put in 14 points.

The last time Miami played real defense was against the Chicago Bulls on Sunday, another tough loss. But lately, the Heat have faltered defensively. The Orlando Magic scored easily, while the San Antonio Spurs ran away with a 30-point victory when Miami's defense seemingly disappeared. Portland also had a great scoring night, averaging 1.22 points per possession, where their season average has been 1.08.

Miami's true strength lies in its deadly ability to score in transition. But with the team's inability to rebound on the defense or force turnovers, they are getting fewer opportunities to transition into a fast break when they play the better teams in the league. They will get another chance to end their losing streak on Thursday when they play the Los Angeles Lakers in Miami.